Loren Larson, who died in a crash July 28, 2016, stands by the Mooney M20J 201 he flew in an undated photograph from his Facebook page.

Location: Holmen, WIAccident Number: CEN16FA295Date & Time: 07/28/2016, 1138 CDTRegistration: N54PMAircraft: MOONEY M20JAircraft Damage: DestroyedDefining Event: Loss of control in flightInjuries: 1 FatalFlight Conducted Under: Part 91: General Aviation - Personal On July 28, 2016, about 1138 central daylight time, a Mooney M20J, N54PM, impacted terrain near Holmen, Wisconsin, while being vectored for an instrument approach to runway 18 at La Crosse Regional Airport (LSE), La Crosse, Wisconsin. The commercial pilot sustained fatal injuries, and the airplane was destroyed by impact forces. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 as a personal flight that was operating on an instrument flight rules flight plan. Day instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The flight originated from Willmar Municipal Airport-John L Rice Field (BDH), Willmar, Minnesota, at 1024 and was destined for LSE.A friend of the pilot stated that the pilot planned the flight a "few weeks" earlier. The friend reported that the pilot was going to pick him up at LSE and that they were going to fly to Appleton, Wisconsin, to buy tickets for the Oshkosh air show and then fly to Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The friend said that he received a text message from the pilot at 1013 stating that he was ready for takeoff from BDH and would be in the air in about 10 minutes. According to the friend, the flight departed at 1024. He stated that, according to Flightaware, the flight was to land at 1137.Minneapolis Center provided radar vectors to the pilot for the final approach course for the instrument landing system (ILS) runway 18 approach and then was instructed to contact LSE Air Traffic Control Tower (ATCT). The pilot contacted LSE ATCT and reported that the airplane was over Mindi (Mindi was the locator outer marker for the ILS runway 18 approach and was located 6.6 miles north of runway 18.) The pilot then asked for radar vectors for the localizer. LSE ATCT instructed the pilot to maintain 4,000 feet and to contact Minneapolis Center for radar vectors. The pilot acknowledged the instruction. There were no further radio transmissions from the pilot.A witness near the accident site stated that he heard the airplane going very fast about 1145 or 1150. He added that the weather was "bad," it was "misting." and the clouds were lower than 700 ft above ground level. He stated that he heard the engine running but could not tell where the engine sound was coming from. The engine then "quit." After the airplane's engine quit, 3 to 4 minutes elapsed and then he heard a "boom."

Loren Ross Larson

Loren worked for the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad as a foreman for the past 36 years. He had a passion for flying, with over 20 years of experience. He served on the Kerkhoven Rescue Squad for 10 years.

Pilot InformationCertificate: CommercialAge: 55, MaleAirplane Rating(s): Single-engine LandSeat Occupied: LeftOther Aircraft Rating(s): NoneRestraint Used:Instrument Rating(s): AirplaneSecond Pilot Present: NoInstructor Rating(s): NoneToxicology Performed: NoMedical Certification: Class 2 With Waivers/LimitationsLast FAA Medical Exam: 01/01/2016Occupational Pilot: NoLast Flight Review or Equivalent: 11/29/2015Flight Time: 1455.5 hours (Total, all aircraft), 1019.8 hours (Total, this make and model), 1376.5 hours (Pilot In Command, all aircraft), 0 hours (Last 90 days, all aircraft), 0 hours (Last 30 days, all aircraft), 1.2 hours (Last 24 hours, all aircraft) The pilot's logbook showed that his last instrument proficiency check, as specified in 14 CFR Part 61 section 57(d), which included a 1.0 hour biennial flight review, was dated September 7, 2013, and was conducted in the accident airplane. The last filled-in page of the pilot's logbook had flight entries dated from August 1 to May 31 with no year(s) entered; the previous logbook page had its last entry dated July 31, 2014. There was an endorsement at the back of the pilot's logbook for a biennial flight review that was dated November 29, 2015.Title 14 CFR 61.57(c)(1) states that a person may act as pilot in command under IFR or weather conditions less than the minimums prescribed for VFR only if:"Within the 6 calendar months preceding the month of the flight, that person performed and logged at least the following tasks and iterations in an airplane, powered-lift, helicopter, or airship, as appropriate, for the instrument rating privileges to be maintained in actual weather conditions, or under simulated conditions using a view-limiting device that involves having performed the following—(i) Six instrument approaches.(ii) Holding procedures and tasks.(iii) Intercepting and tracking courses through the use of navigational electronic systems."Title 14 CFR 61.57(d) states that "a person who has failed to meet the instrument experience requirements of paragraph (c) for more than six calendar months may reestablish instrument currency only by completing an instrument proficiency check. The instrument proficiency check must consist of the areas of operation and instrument tasks required in the instrument rating practical test standards."According to the Federal Aviation Administration publication, "Instrument Proficiency Check (IPC) Guidance," regulations for the biennial flight review require a minimum of 1 hour of ground training and 1 hour of flight training. The publication states that, while Part 61.57(d) does not stipulate a minimum time requirement for the IPC, a good rule of thumb is to plan at least 90 minutes of ground time and at least 2 hours of flight time for a solid evaluation of the pilot's instrument flying knowledge and skills. The publication further states that, depending on the pilot's level of instrument experience and currency, the instructor administering the IPC may want to plan on two or more separate sessions to complete an IPC. For pilots with little or no recent instrument flying experience, it is a good idea to schedule an initial session in an appropriate aircraft training device.Aircraft and Owner/Operator InformationAircraft Manufacturer: MOONEYRegistration: N54PMModel/Series: M20JAircraft Category: AirplaneYear of Manufacture: 1988Amateur Built: NoAirworthiness Certificate: NormalSerial Number: 24-1677Landing Gear Type: Retractable - TricycleSeats: 4Date/Type of Last Inspection: 02/04/2016, AnnualCertified Max Gross Wt.: 2740 lbsTime Since Last Inspection:Engines: 1 ReciprocatingAirframe Total Time: 3294 Hours as of last inspectionEngine Manufacturer: Textron LycomingELT: C91 installed, activated, did not aid in locating accidentEngine Model/Series: IO-360-A3B6DRegistered Owner: PilotRated Power: 200 hpOperator: PilotOperating Certificate(s) Held: None Meteorological Information and Flight PlanConditions at Accident Site: Instrument ConditionsCondition of Light: DayObservation Facility, Elevation: LSE, 656 ft mslObservation Time: 1053 CDTDistance from Accident Site: 6 Nautical MilesDirection from Accident Site: 20°Lowest Cloud Condition: ClearTemperature/Dew Point: 21°C / 19°CLowest Ceiling: Overcast / 700 ft aglVisibility: 10 MilesWind Speed/Gusts, Direction: 7 knots, 360°Visibility (RVR):Altimeter Setting: 29.94 inches HgVisibility (RVV):Precipitation and Obscuration: No Obscuration; No PrecipitationDeparture Point: Willmar, MN (BDH)Type of Flight Plan Filed: IFRDestination: La Crosse, WI (LSE)Type of Clearance: IFRDeparture Time: 1024 CDTType of Airspace:Airport InformationAirport: La Crosse Regional Airport (LSE)Runway Surface Type:Airport Elevation: 656 ftRunway Surface Condition:Runway Used: N/AIFR Approach: ILSRunway Length/Width:VFR Approach/Landing: NoneWreckage and Impact InformationCrew Injuries: 1 FatalAircraft Damage: DestroyedPassenger Injuries: N/AAircraft Fire: NoneGround Injuries: N/AAircraft Explosion: NoneTotal Injuries: 1 FatalLatitude, Longitude: 43.978889, 91.213611 The accident site was located about 5.6 miles north/northeast of runway 18 at LSE at an elevation of 805 ft msl. The wreckage path was about 800 ft in length and oriented on a north/south heading in a grass/corn field. The fuselage, wings, empennage, control surfaces, engine, and propeller were present along the wreckage path. At the northern edge of the wreckage path about a 35-ft-long by 6- to 10-ft-wide area of corn stalks were cut at an angle of about 45°, sloping down toward the east. The southern edge of the wreckage path contained the engine, which was separated from the airframe. The fuselage was located about 80 ft south of the cut corn stalks and was upright. The left and right wings were located about 6 ft north and 45 ft east of the fuselage, respectively. There was no evidence of soot or fire on the airframe, engine, or terrain.Examination of the flight controls confirmed flight control continuity from the wing and empennage control surfaces to the cockpit controls through separations of the control system that were consistent with overload. The wing flaps were in the 0° position.The base of the propeller hub was attached to the engine crankshaft with all the attachment bolts in place. The upper portion of the propeller hub was broken off, and its pieces were located along the wreckage path. The hub fracture surfaces exhibited 45° granular fracture faces consistent with overstress. Both propeller blades were separated from the hub. One propeller blade was buried near corn stalks near the northern edge of the wreckage path, and the other propeller blade was located about 35 ft from the corn stalks. Both propeller blades exhibited leading edge damage and chordwise scratching consistent with propeller rotation/engine power at impact.The instrument panel was located about 37 ft south from the fuselage. The flight instruments were separated from the panel and were located along the wreckage path. The attitude indicator, which was vacuum driven, was broken apart exposing the gyro casing and gimbals. The gyro was separated from the casing and was not found during recovery of the airplane wreckage. The gyro casing showed circumferential smearing/scoring and was attached to the pitch and roll gimbals.The engine-driven vacuum pump was attached to the engine accessory section. Removal of the vacuum pump showed that the vacuum pump's drive teeth were intact, but the drive was separated from its opaque plastic coupling, with separation features consistent with torsional overstress. The coupling exhibited counterclockwise witness marks (the drive rotates counterclockwise during engine operation as viewed from the rear of the engine).The engine did not exhibit any mechanical anomalies that would have precluded engine operation.Medical And Pathological InformationAn autopsy was not performed, and no toxicology samples were available for testing. During the pilot's most recent aviation medical exam, no concerns were reported by the pilot and no significant issues were identified by the aviation medical examiner.

KERKHOVEN — The propeller was spinning and the plane's engine was running when an experienced pilot from Kerkhoven crashed his single-engine aircraft on July 28, 2016, into a cornfield northeast of the La Crosse, Wisconsin, airport. That's based on the analysis of wreckage found at the crash site where pilot Loren Larson, 55, of Kerkhoven, died, according to the final factual report on the accident by the National Transportation Safety Board.It determined that "loss of control in flight'' was the defining event that caused the crash. The NTSB released its report Jan. 30 after a nearly 1½-year investigation.Family members have been "watching and waiting'' for the report, Lynn Larson, brother of the victim, told the West Central Tribune. The determination of "loss of control in flight'' left him perplexed. His brother had over 20 years of experience as a pilot, he said.Loren Larson had departed solo from the Willmar Municipal Airport in a rented Mooney airplane at 10:24 a.m. CDT. He was planning to land in La Crosse to pick up a friend. They were to fly to Appleton, Wisconsin, to buy tickets and then fly to the Oshkosh air show.Due to cloud cover, Larson was going to make an instrument approach at the La Crosse airport. Instead, his plane impacted a cornfield at 11:38 a.m. CDT, about 5.6 miles northeast of the runway at the La Crosse Airport.A witness told investigators that the weather was "bad,'' according to the accident report. It was misting at the time and clouds were lower than 700 feet above ground level.The witness heard the plane's engine running, but could not tell where the sound was coming from. "The engine then quit." After the airplane's engine quit, three to four minutes elapsed and then he heard a boom,'' stated the report.Larson had made radio contact with the La Crosse Regional Airport and had requested vector coordinates to make an instrument approach.A transcript of the radio transmissions between the pilot and controllers indicates that an air traffic controller in La Crosse had instructed Larson to maintain his altitude at 4,000 feet. He provided Larson with the radio frequency to the Minneapolis Air Route Traffic Control Center. The Minneapolis Center had the plane on radar and was to provide the vector coordinates to Larson for the approach to Runway 18 at La Crosse.Larson confirmed the radio frequency for contacting Minneapolis with the La Crosse Airport controller. He did not repeat the controller's order to maintain a 4,000-foot altitude.Larson's radio transmission confirming the radio frequency was recorded at 16:38:23 Universal Time Coordinated, or moments before the crash is believed to have occurred.Radio transmissions continued between the La Crosse and Minneapolis controllers, who were not aware of the crash until an emergency locator signal was received.The Minneapolis Center told La Crosse that it had cleared Larson for the approach, but had not heard back from him. " ... We asked him if he had any issues. He said no. So I was just wondering if he had said anything to you about having any issues,'' stated the Minneapolis controller to La Crosse.Repeated attempts by the La Crosse controller to contact Larson following this exchange did not produce a response.The accident report indicated that Larson had previous training for making an instrument approach, but it was dated. The report stated that he should have completed a proficiency check within the previous six months of the flight, but had not.An 800-foot-long wreckage path, running north and south, was found at the accident site. At the northern edge of the wreckage path, an area of corn stalks — measuring about 35 feet long and 6 to 10 feet wide — was cut an an angle of about 45 degrees, sloping to the east.There was no evidence of soot or fire on the airframe, engine or terrain. The left and right wings were located away from the plane's body. The wing flaps were in the 0-degree position.Damage to the propellers was consistent with rotation and engine power at impact, the report stated. The engine did not exhibit any mechanical anomalies that would have precluded engine operation, according to the report.The plane's instrument panel was located about 37 feet from the fuselage. The attitude indicator was broken apart and its gyro was not found.An autopsy was not performed and no toxicology samples were available for testing. Larson's most recent aviation medical exam had found no health concerns.

NTSB Identification: CEN16FA29514 CFR Part 91: General AviationAccident occurred Thursday, July 28, 2016 in Holmen, WIAircraft: MOONEY M20P, registration: N54PMInjuries: 1 Fatal.This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed. NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.On July 28, 2016, about 1138 central daylight time, a Mooney M20P, N54PM, impacted terrain near Holmen, Wisconsin during an instrument landing system approach runway 18 at La Crosse Regional Airport (LSE), La Crosse, Wisconsin. The airplane was destroyed by impact forces. The commercial instrument rated pilot sustained fatal injuries. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight that was on an instrument flight rules flight plan. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed about the time of the accident. The flight originated from Willmar Municipal Airport-John L Rice Field (BDH), Willmar, Minnesota and was destined to LSE.

MONROE, La. (KNOE) - On Wednesday, first responders responded to a crash landing at the Monroe Regional Airport.Monroe Fire Department says the pilot was forced to land his plane without landing gear after experiencing mechanical problems in the air.Officials tell KNOE the pilot was unaware his landing gear did not descend properly, causing it to land on its belly, damaging the front portion of the aircraft.Workers say the pilot was the only person on the single-engine plane. He was able to walk away without any injuries.The runway was closed until the aircraft could be removed and all debris was cleared. It has since been re-opened.KNOE does not have any word on what caused the plan to malfunction.

MONROE, La. - According to the Monroe Fire Department, a single engine plane was involved in an Alert 3 on runway 4-22 at the Monroe Regional Airport.The incident happened around 2:00 p.m. Wednesday, January 31, 2018.The pilot was the only occupant on board and was able to walk away without any injuries.The runway will remain closed until the aircraft can be removed and all debris is cleared.

Those who may have information that might be relevant to the National Transportation Safety Board investigation may contact them by email eyewitnessreport@ntsb.gov, and any friends and family who want to contact investigators about the accident should email assistance@ntsb.gov. Federal Aviation Administration / Flight Standards District Office; ClevelandAircraft crashed due to unknown circumstances in a wooded area. http://registry.faa.gov/N9378YDate:31-JAN-18Time:01:03:00ZRegis#:N9378YAircraft Make:BEECHAircraft Model:35 A33Event Type:ACCIDENTHighest Injury:FATALAircraft Missing:NoDamage:UNKNOWNActivity:UNKNOWNFlight Phase:UNKNOWN (UNK)Operation:91City:HELENWOODState:TENNESSEE

The pilot who survived a deadly plane crash in Scott County is fighting for his life in the hospital.

The University of Tennessee Medical Center said David Maxwell was in critical condition as of the morning of February 1, 2018.

The wreckage of his plane that was also carrying his wife Vicki Maxwell and their dog had been found in Scott County on Wednesday, January 31 after it was reported missing. The plane had crashed the afternoon prior on January 30.

The wife died in the crash. The pilot and dog survived and had been trapped in the plane overnight before being discovered.

Scott County Sheriff Ronnie Phillips said the plane was spotted just before 9 a.m. Wednesday by a USDA helicopter from wildlife management while they were hog hunting. The plane was found off a cliff line in the 500 block of Old Jamestown Road in Helenwood by New River.

The sheriff said David Maxwell was taken to the hospital via LIFESTAR around 10:30 a.m. Wednesday.

According to the initial investigation, the Federal Aviation Administration said the plane was a Beechcraft 35-A33 Debonair that left Venice Municipal Airport in Venice, Florida, on Tuesday morning. The FAA issued an alert when the aircraft did not arrive at its destination in Urbana, Ohio. It was determined the plane was last spotted in Scott County before it disappeared from air traffic tracking systems.

Civil air patrol also had units up Tuesday night and Wednesday morning searching for the couple. A ground search started around midnight after they received a call from the FAA that a plane might be down in a wooded area near the unincorporated community of Helenwood.

Early Wednesday morning, a post from David and Vicki Maxwell’s daughter asking for help finding her parents was being shared widely on Facebook.

Erin Patton said her parents and their dog were flying home from Florida to their home in Springfield, Ohio, in a light aircraft on Tuesday. She said the plane went off the radar while flying around 1:55 p.m. that day in Scott County.

The civil air patrol believes the plane crashed around 4 p.m. Tuesday. Search teams weren't notified of the crash until about eight hours later.

Tennessee Wing Commander Colonel Dent Young was part of the search. He said the Maxwells did not file a flight plan. While it's not required, Young said it's also not safe to go without.

"The aircraft crashed about 4 p.m. last night. If they'd have filed a flight plan, the search would have started by 6 p.m. or so, instead of starting at 11:45 at night. So for 8 hours they were in the airplane on the ground with nobody looking for them," Young said.

The National Transportation Safety Board is working to determine the cause of the crash alongside the FAA investigation.

HUNTSVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) - A woman is dead and her husband injured after a plane crashed in in Scott County. Erin Patton, an Ohio woman, posted on Facebook that her parents, Vicki and David Maxwell, and their dog were flying from Florida to Ohio on Tuesday when their plane disappeared. The Scott County Sheriff's Department says the Maxwell's plane was found just south of Huntsville around 8 a.m. after an overnight search. Officials say the Vicki was killed in the crash. David and their dog survived.David Maxwell, who was piloting the plane, was airlifted to UT Medical Center. His condition is critical. Scott County sheriff's officials said a Civil Air Patrol plane searching the area overnight was able to pick up a signal from the missing plane, but couldn't pinpoint the location. "We knew from radar forensics approximately where the aircraft would have been," said Dent Young with Civil Air Patrol. "We centered our search on that, spent about two hours doing that."Young says because it was so dark ground crews were not able to be sent out. The search by ground began around 7:00 am and the search by air began around 8:30 am. "While they were beginning their search we were notified that a USDA helicopter which had been in the area on another mission had been diverted to assist us in the search and they had located the aircraft," said Young.Temperatures in Scott County dropped to 21 degrees overnight according to the National Weather Service.According to the FAA, the Beechcraft Debonair plane left Venice Municipal Airport in Florida on Tuesday morning. When the plane didn't land at its destination in Urbana, Ohio, 800 miles away, authorities began their search. Young says the plane did not have a flight plan."This pilot was flying under what we call VFR, visual flight rules, and while not required to file a flight plan, if the pilot had filed a flight plan before they took off from Florida, this rescue effort, and it would have been a rescue effort, would have started about two hours after the air craft was over due to land"Instead the search effort didn't start until eight hours after the probable landing time. The NTSB and FAA will arrive on the scene Friday to begin the investigation into what caused the crash. The investigation could take months.
Original article can be found here ➤ http://www.wate.com

A frame grab taken from a handout video provided by the U.S. Navy shows the view from a U.S. EP-3 Aries aircraft being intercepted by a Russian SU-27 fighter jet in what the Pentagon claims was international airspace over the Black Sea, on January 29.

Only days after the U.S. accused a Russian plane of dangerously buzzing a U.S. military plane in the Black Sea, the Russian defense ministry said Thursday that if U.S. pilots are depressed over Russian planes protecting its borders, they should fly other routes.The incident Monday, as reported by U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa, involved a Russian Su-27 flying within five feet of an EP-3 Aries before crossing through the U.S. aircraft’s flight path and forcing it to fly through the Su-27’s flight wash, according to Military Times.It was the second such incident in three months. In late November, a P-8A Poseidon was left in another Russian jet’s afterburners, causing the Poseidon to roll 15 degrees and experience "violent turbulence," Military Times reported.The latest incident, which lasted about two hours and 40 minutes, occurred as the Aries was flying in international airspace, the Navy said.The Aries, used for intelligence and reconnaissance, did not provoke the response, according to the Navy statement."The Russian military is within its right to operate within international airspace, but they must behave with international standards set to ensure safety and prevent incidents," the Navy statement said. "Unsafe actions increase the risk of miscalculation and midair collisions."

The Russian defense ministry shrugged off the complaint and chided the U.S. over its concern."The Aerospace Force will continue to maintain reliable protection of Russia’s airspace," the defense ministry said, according to the Tass news agency. "If the awareness of this is a reason for U.S. air pilots to feel depression or succumb to phobias, we advise the U.S. side to exclude the routes of such flights near Russian borders in the future or return to the negotiating table and agree on their rules," the defense ministry saidThe U.S. State Department also weighed in after Monday's incident, accusing the Russians of "flagrantly violating existing agreements and international law.""This is but the latest example of Russian military activities disregarding international norms and agreements," State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in the statement. "We call on Russia to cease these unsafe actions that increase the risk of miscalculation, danger to aircrew on both sides, and midair collisions."
Original article can be found here ➤ http://www.king5.com

The Wall Street JournalBy Alex FrangosJanuary 31, 2018 10:38 a.m. ETWhat do you call a cash machine with wings? BoeingThe airplane maker has been on a tremendous streak, notwithstanding a humiliating though financially unimportant loss in a trade tariff case regarding imports of Bombardier jets. On the metrics investors most care about, it has been a dream flight.Full-year results out Wednesday show why. Operating cash flow exceeded $13 billion, handily beating expectations. And guidance for the future looks robust, with the company expecting to generate $15 billion of operating cash in 2018, well ahead of the $13.6 billion analysts had been forecasting, according to FactSet.Boeing was one of the biggest winners of the reduction in corporate tax rates, boosting last year’s earnings per share by a fifth. The core commercial airplane business continues to excel as it cranks out more 737 Max models and higher margin 787 Dreamliners roll off the production line.The broader industry environment also remains solid. Boeing’s customers, the airlines, are enjoying bumper air passenger growth globally in the high single digits, well above their 4% to 5% historical average.The roaring stock price, however, should give investors pause. Following last year’s 90% gain, Boeing shares kept up the pace in January, rising by another 21% by Wednesday morning, leading other members of the Dow Jones Industrial Average by a wide margin.The pessimistic case isn’t that Boeing is doing anything wrong—it is that investors are simply too excited and not factoring in possible bumps in the road. Boeing’s multiple of enterprise value to earnings before interest, tax depreciation and amortization is at its highest level in absolute terms and relative to the S&P 500 this millennium. Its multiple of price to free cash flow, has expanded rapidly since early 2016.Boeing is flying high, but at some point the altitude gets to your head.Original article can be found here ➤ https://www.wsj.com

Fears of hypoxia and other physiological factors forced the 19th Air Force to suspend all solo flights in T-6 Texan trainer aircraft indefinitely Wednesday.The announcement came in the form of a screenshot of a message posted on the unofficial Facebook page Air Force early yesterday, Defense News reported. The message read: “Due to the nature of T-6 Unexplained Physiological Events (UPE) symptoms and ability to recognize the situation, all solo sorties (both student and IP) are suspended until further notice.”The Air Force had issued a number of precautionary measures to be followed by pilots in order to avoid dizziness or other hypoxia symptoms when they were up in the air.Maj. Gen. Patrick Doherty, commander of the 19th Air Force, ordered all T-6 instructor and student pilots to fly with their masks down, which meant that one of the bayonets or connectors would be unlatched throughout their flight. This was to assist them in breathing the cockpit air, hence lessening the chances of undergoing hypoxia-like symptoms when they were up in the air. Pilots will also be allowed to partially remove their masks when the flight is grounded.However, if the pilot did to the eject mid-air or encounters cabin pressure issues, smoke, or fumes, he or she should put the mask back on, latching the disengaged bayonet before following the standard protocol in that given situation.After numerous Air Force A-10 Thunderbolts, F-35A Lightnings, and T-6A training aircrafts were grounded in 2017, the Air Force announced on Jan. 22, 2018, that it had appointed a team — Unexplained Physiologic Events Integration Team — to get to the root of what would have caused the pilots to experience hypoxia-like problems during the flight."As part of the integrated effort to address physiological events, the Air Force is providing more resources to understand [unexplained physiological events], standardize response actions to such events and assess options for more robust aircrew training to recognize and respond to these events," Brig. Gen. Bobbi Jo Doorenbos, who was picked to lead the team, said in an Air Force release at the time. "Our ultimate goal is to prevent UPEs."On June 9, 2017, the Air Force grounded all F-35A Lightning II's at Luke Air Force Base, following five cases where pilots experienced symptoms similar to hypoxia. No pilots were injured during the landing in any of the five cases since their backup oxygen reserve had kicked in each time, Business Insider reported.Although investigators tried to determine the exact cause of the incident, their examination failed to yield results. Before F-35A operations resumed on June 21 last year at the base, the pilots were told to follow a few steps to avoid repetition of the previous incident such as increasing the minimum level of backup oxygen when they fly and avoiding certain altitudes where they began experiencing the symptoms.In a similar instance where the entire fleet of T-6A Texans at Vance Air Force Base in Oklahoma was grounded in November due to the hypoxia, the experts assigned to investigate were able to eliminate maintenance and aircrew flight equipment procedure problems as the cause behind the recurring event, although they were unable to pinpoint the exact cause.Original article can be found here ➤ http://www.ibtimes.com

If you want to see JoeBen Bevirt’s flying car, you have to get in a helicopter. The engineer’s private airfield is nestled in a valley on the Northern California coast between Monterey and Santa Barbara, and it’s remote by design, out past a swirl of tan and green fields. JoeBen Bevirt, a 44-year-old whose bursts of childlike delight punctuate his otherwise quiet intensity, bounds out to greet the chopper, then points the arriving pair of reporters to the prototype resting on the dirt runway nearby. It’s an exotic-looking white aircraft with numerous propellers. (Bevirt agreed to the visit only on the condition that physical specifics remain unpublished.) He calls it an air taxi. “This is what I have been dreaming about for 40 years,” he says. “It’s the culmination of my life’s work.”Bevirt is the founder and chief executive officer of Joby Aviation Inc., a startup that’s spent the past nine years trying to design and build a whole new kind of short-hop aircraft. Believe it or not, things have been going well. We were the first two reporters to see a demo of the prototype, named Rachel after the women several of its creators used to date. The pilot managed a vertical takeoff, 15 minutes of flight in a 15-mile loop, and a safe landing. Powered by electric motors and sophisticated control software, the taxi performs like a cross between a drone and a small plane, able to zip straight up on takeoff and then fly at twice the speed of a helicopter while making about as much noise as a swarm of superbees. Bevirt says thousands of these sky cabs will one day shuttle people around cities, soaring above the conventional traffic below.Broken promises of flying cars predate The Jetsons, but Bevirt has made believers out of people with deep pockets. On Feb. 1, Joby Aviation announced a fresh $100 million in venture funding, more than three times the capital it had raised before, from investors including Intel Capital, Toyota AI Ventures, JetBlue Technology Ventures, and Capricorn Investment Group, a prominent backer of Tesla and Space Exploration Technologies. “There are a lot of dreamers in this space, but we have done a lot of research here, and JoeBen has absolutely nailed the right time for it,” says Bonny Simi, president of JetBlue’s investment arm.Thanks to advances in electric motors, batteries, software, and other components, the field of flying cars, air taxis, or whatever you want to call them (Sky Segways?) is a lot more crowded than it was even a couple of years ago. Larry Page, the CEO of Google parent Alphabet Inc., has pumped tens of millions of dollars into startups Kitty Hawk and Zee.Aero. A dozen other startups around the world have similar projects at various stages of design, as do Airbus SE and Boeing Co. Even Uber Technologies Inc. claims to be working on an air taxi service, tentatively called Uber Elevate. “I think it’s going to happen within the next 10 years,” Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said during a Jan. 22 speech at a tech conference in Munich.Bevirt’s secrecy extends to the environs of Joby’s camouflaged lair: The trailers that serve as his engineers’ flight-control centers are covered in posters warning them about the area’s mountain lions, snakes, spiders, and other deadly fauna. Bevirt does say Joby intends to build an aircraft that will hold four passengers and a pilot and will travel at least 150 miles on a single charge at an altitude of a few thousand feet or less. (That would mean the cabin wouldn’t need to be pressurized.) “Another goal is to be 100 times more quiet during takeoff and landing than a helicopter and near-silent during flyovers,” says Joby Executive Chairman Paul Sciarra, a co-founder of Pinterest, the image-centric wish list site.All told, Joby’s venture funding totals about $130 millionA trained mechanical engineer and sci-fi nerd, Bevirt made a fortune selling bendable tripods and other camera accessories more than a decade ago. He’s poured that money into his aviation startup. A couple of years back, he had 35 people working on various prototype craft; now he has 120, most of them working far from the airfield at his 500-acre ranch in Santa Cruz. There, engineers make just about every part of the air taxi prototype, from the body and motors to the flight-control software.Joby says it plans to mass-produce its air taxis for a ride-hailing service that it will operate. Bevirt’s vision includes a landing pad for every office and cul-de-sac. Each trip, he says, will cost about as much as an Uber or Lyft ride does today, and eventually the air taxis will be fully autonomous. “Our mission is to save a billion people an hour a day,” he says. He’s less confident about a rollout date, partly because the formidable challenges ahead include convincing politicians, the Federal Aviation Administration, and the cab-hailing public that air taxis are safe. “We are well into the design and build of the production vehicle” was the most he’d say on the subject of time to market.While a whiff of the surreal hangs over Bevirt’s claims that he’ll “change people’s relationship with aircraft,” some of his investors are counting on it. JetBlue’s Simi says she sees Joby as part of a broader shift in the aerospace industry, a way to make more personal forms of air travel a part of daily life. JetBlue has also invested in Zunum Aero, which is building an electric jet that can fly dozens of people 1,000 miles. And though Intel owns a stake in a German air taxi startup called Volocopter GmbH, Wendell Brooks, president of Intel Capital, says Joby “is very far ahead relative to all the other things we’ve seen.”
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Location: Ray, MIAccident Number: CEN17LA341Date & Time: 05/27/2017, 1135 EDTRegistration: N5584UAircraft: PIPER PA-28Aircraft Damage: SubstantialDefining Event: Hard landingInjuries: 1 SeriousFlight Conducted Under: Part 91: General Aviation - Personal On May 27, 2017, about 1135 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-28-140, N5584U, impacted trees, terrain, and a tractor near Ray Township, Michigan. The private pilot on board sustained serious injuries and the airplane was substantially damaged. The airplane was owned and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. No flight plan was filed and day visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident.The pilot was landing at the Ray Community Airport following a 20 minute local flight. On his first attempt to land, he was high on the approach and elected to go around. On the second landing attempt, the pilot said he was long. He said he applied throttle and lost consciousness.Witnesses reported that the pilot made several landing attempts, but each time the airplane was too fast or too high to land. On the last attempt, the airplane touched down fast about halfway down the 2,495' runway. The airplane skipped, floated, and impacted the runway nose gear first about 1/4 the distance from the end, breaking the nose gear. The airplane bounced and departed the east end of the runway. The airplane continued across a gravel road, through a field, and then struck several small trees and a farm tractor before coming to a stop.The pilot's flight instructor said the pilot was not competent to operate the airplane. He had previously flown with the pilot and said that his traffic patterns, approaches and landings were very substandard for the certificate he held. The flight instructor discussed this with the pilot following their last flight together, and told the pilot he needed a lot of practice and should be flying with a competent pilot or instructor.The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings, the engine and propeller, the engine cowling, and forward fuselage. The nose landing gear was broken aft and the left main landing gear was bent inboard. Flight control continuity was confirmed. An examination of the airplane's engine, and other systems revealed no pre-impact anomalies that contributed to the accident. Pilot InformationCertificate: PrivateAge: 73, MaleAirplane Rating(s): Single-engine LandSeat Occupied: LeftOther Aircraft Rating(s): NoneRestraint Used: UnknownInstrument Rating(s): NoneSecond Pilot Present: NoInstructor Rating(s): NoneToxicology Performed: NoMedical Certification: Class 3 With Waivers/LimitationsLast FAA Medical Exam: 03/08/2016Occupational Pilot: NoLast Flight Review or Equivalent: 09/10/2016Flight Time: 210 hours (Total, all aircraft), 50 hours (Total, this make and model), 150 hours (Pilot In Command, all aircraft) Aircraft and Owner/Operator InformationAircraft Manufacturer: PIPERRegistration: N5584UModel/Series: PA-28 140Aircraft Category: AirplaneYear of Manufacture: 1969Amateur Built: NoAirworthiness Certificate: NormalSerial Number: 28-26314Landing Gear Type: TricycleSeats: 4Date/Type of Last Inspection: 07/01/2016, AnnualCertified Max Gross Wt.:Time Since Last Inspection:Engines: 1 ReciprocatingAirframe Total Time: 3715 Hours as of last inspectionEngine Manufacturer: LYCOMINGELT:Engine Model/Series: 0-320 SERIESRegistered Owner: On fileRated Power: 0 hpOperator: On fileOperating Certificate(s) Held: None